THE POLLOCK. 49 



The blue-fish belongs to tlie mackerel family. 

 The upper part of his body is of a bluish color, 

 whence his name ; the lower part of the sides and 

 the belly are whitish or silvery. 



The Pollock. 



This is a salt water fish of beautiful appearance 

 and singularly elegant shape. It is taken all along 

 the Northern Atlantic coast, from Long Island to 

 Newfoundland. From its agility and fine form, the 

 Bay of Fundy fishermen often call it the "sea-sal- 

 mon." It has a strongly-defined silvery line running 

 down the sides. Above the lateral line the color is 

 a greenish black. The belly is white. The time for 

 fishing it is in the spring and fall. Jeffries Ledge, 

 which lies fifteen or sixteen miles east by north of 

 Cape Ann, is a favorite fishing ground for pollock, 

 and immense quantities are taken there in the fall of 

 the year. Formerly the fish was very little prized, 

 was hardly ever eaten fresh, and was so carelessly 

 cured that it had a low reputation in the market. 

 Within a quarter of a century it has come into use, 

 and is a favorite article, particularly when salted and 

 dried. The pollock grows to the size sometimes of 

 thirty pounds, but the average weight of those taken 

 in deep water is ten pounds. In shallow water, the 

 weight varies from a pound and a half upwards. The 

 tackle used for black-fish is the kind wanted for fish- 

 ing pollock, the hooks and lines varying with the 

 depth of water. 



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